Great American Business Leaders of the 20th Century

Copley took over the struggling California-based newspaper empire when her husband died in 1973. She sold a number of unprofitable divisions, streamlined the company’s flagship operations, expanded coverage on a variety of issues, and returned the organization to profitability. Once stabilized, Copley pursued a series of strategic acquisitions to expand the scope of the organization. In addition to its flagship paper, The San Diego Union Tribune, Copley Press owned 11 other dailies and 32 weeklies by the late nineties.